Third Time's a Charm
by AlchemyRepose
Summary: There are times when you don't regret giving in to Luffy's pleas to join his crew. Most of those times are due to the peevish young swordsman aboard the ship. Zoro/Reader - Please review!


It's just a little past noon as you stride down the steet, dragging behind you an unconcious felon. The sight of you hauling an unconcious criminal or two to the nearby Marine base is commonplace, and the people of this city have seen stranger things.

The criminals you usually caught had little or no bounty. You caught murderers, thieves, and other people who selfishly and cruelly took from others. However, there were many times were you had turned a blind eye or even helped someone who was stealing out of necessity. If you did help them, however, you made sure that they were able to stabilize themselves and not fall back into thievery. As a result, many people who lived in the darker slums and backstreet districts had taken a liking to you.

You like to think that you're a knight- a knight of the paradise city Santalago.

People from all across the Grand Line flood to the city, to see if the rumors about the flying island of Santalago were true. While the entire island did float above the water, the streets were not paved with gold and emeralds, and the most hospitable people were the ones working in the brothels.

People came, saw, and didn't have the money to go back home. They were stuck, living like rats in the filthy streets or even underneath the island itself, in boat-houses that were anchored to the island. A large portion of the populace lived in poverty. It was not a pleasant way of life.

Even so, the majority of the people are middle-class and got along fairly well. There are plenty of jobs and the economy was thriving. While the slums were filthy, the other parts of the city were well-maintained and beautiful.

The entire city covers nearly the whole island, and it was built in a massive spiral. The slums are located on the southeastern edge of the island, as the land there is thinner and more likely to crumble. The backstreet district is located at the northern tip-or the end of the spiral.

You are technically one of the middle class. While you spend most of your time in the slums training or patrolling the area, your actual home is in one of the middle class neighborhoods- the daggerfall district. It's in one of the outer rings of the spiral of the city, within view of the edge of the island but a safe distance away.

It's late afternoon when you leave the Marine base situated in one of the inner districts. You have only a small amount of money, but its enough for your dinner. You walk home, taking shortcuts and stopping at a small store when you reach daggerfall. Since they were closing for the night, they gave you extra food and a little bit of sake.

As you leave the store, thanking the owner, you spot a man standing in the middle of the street, looking lost. Or, more specifically, you notice his bright green hair. He has a deep scowl on his face and, as your approach him, you hear him mutter.

"What the hell is up with this city..?"

"Are you lost?"

"Eh?" He turns and looks at you. You frown. He looks like an idiot.

"Are. You. Lost."

"I'm not. This damn city is confusing."

"Where are you trying to get to?"

"The docks." He pointed towards the inner city. "They should be over there."

You stare at him, puzzled.

"You're way off." You glance up at the darkening sky and shift the groceries in your arms. "Come on, I'll take you to my place. It's getting dark, so I'll bring you to the docks tomorrow." You walk down the street and you hear him following. You were glad he didn't ask about the almost full plate armor you wore. That might've been because he looked so strange himself.

He wore a sleeveless pale yellow hoodie with nothing but a thick green waistband underneath, and black pants. Attached to his loose leather belt were three katana, and he had three golden earrings on his right ear.

You guessed he'd bought the clothes in the inner city. His entire outfit, save the haramaki, was Santalago city fashion, no doubt about it.

Your house was nearby. It was a small, two-story house. The second floor was originally meant to be rented out, but your parents gave you the whole place as a gift.

"My name's [name], by the way." You say as you unlock the door.

"I'm Zoro." You let him in and dump the groceries on the table. He stands awkwardly in the middle of the living room. A cat brushes against your legs and you crouch down to pet it.

"Why are you wearing that armor?" Zoro says, watching you. You straighten and make to pull off the gloves and gauntlets.

"Simple. I'm a knight."

"A knight?"

"A knight." You repeat, setting the metal gauntlets on the table. "I didn't have any of my weapons with me because I was bringing a criminal to the Marines."

"A bounty hunter, then."

You scowl. "No. A knight."

The two of the stand in silence for a moment, scowling at each other. Then he relaxes and shrugs. "Eh. Whatever."

You pull off the rest of your armor and stick your hand into the bag on the table.

"You hungry?" You pull out the slabs of meat and bread you got from the store. "Yeah. I ran out of money and couldn't buy anything."

You laugh. "Did you spend your money on clothes?"

"Huh?"

"Your outfit. You bought it in the inner city, didn't you?"

"Yesterday, yeah." You grin and shake your head, walking into the kitchen. You cook up the meat and come out to put it on the table, only to find that your guest had found the bottle of sake. "That's for later." You say. You don't usually allow yourself to drink much, and alcohol was a tad expensive. Zoro sets it down without a word and sits at the table. The two of you eat silently, and you let him stay in the second floor room.


End file.
